Champion's Confidant

On the Countryside

"WHAAAAT?! THAT ALL HAPPENED?!"

Chloe nodded to Mika's question before taking a sip of the tea from her thermos. It was lunchtime at school again, and the Monday after Chloe and Ash visited the Vermilion Museum.

"So it was really a real life date?!" pestered Mika, hungry for any details.

Chloe kept her eyes closed so that she wouldn't roll them at her friend. "No, it wasn't. We just hung out, you know? Stop making it something it's not."

Mika was busy ignoring her, grinding her teeth. "We were so busy on Saturday...! All because of that arcade opening, Mom had me helping out at the bakery..." she sighed. "I wish I could have seen you. I bet he was a real sweetheart. It sounds like he tried really hard."

"He tried too hard," Chloe replied. "Goh put him up to so much..." Her mind went to the hushed conversation she had with Goh this very morning, the first time she'd seen him since she left the lab the previous Friday.

"You really put him up to a lot, huh?" she said, frowning.

"I was trying to make your first date a magical and romantic experience," Goh said.

"It wasn't a-"

"Yeah, I know, I know. Trust me, I tried to explain the concept to Ash but it didn't seem like he got it."

Chloe pushed aside the twist in her stomach she felt. "Well, that's right. I hardly know Ash. Even if I have a stupid crush on him, it'd be better to learn more about him first. I'm taking things one step at a time."

Goh smirked. "Oh, so like with Eevee, then?"

That embarrassed her. "Y-Yeah, so what? I like to take things slowly before I make a decision. It's always better to work from more information than less."

Ash poked his head around the corner. "What'd you guys say about Eevee?" he asked, though in truth it was almost impossible to understand what he said since his mouth was still filled with breakfast.

Chlloe sighed. "Point being, it's not a date, he's not my boyfriend, so everyone just needs to relax."

"Fine, fine..." Mika said, slinking into her chair at the desk in front of Chloe's in the classroom where the two of them were eating lunch. "Why'd it have to be you, Little Miss No Fun who gets a crush on someone anyway..."

Chloe groaned. "So anyway, what are you doing for next week, Mika?"

She sat up and blinked her blue eyes. "Next week?" she asked. "What's special about next week?"

Chloe rolled her eyes - openly, this time. "Next week is spring break. We won't be in school, so I guess you'll just be helping your Mom out, won't you?"

A shrug and a sigh came from Chloe's friend. "Yeah, probably... She's such a workaholic... I wish we could take a break, too, sometimes..." She reached behind her and grabbed a melon bread from her own lunch box and took a bite out of it. "So what about you?" she asked with her mouth full, reminding Chloe of how Ash would talk. "Do you have some big plans or something?"

Chloe sat up, smirking. "My Dad's taking us on a little vacation. We're going to hit the beach on Cinnabar Island and I fully plan on enjoying the sun and sea."

It was a relaxing week away from the Lab that they had planned for this spring break. The lab would remain open for Ash and Goh to come and go if they wanted, though they would be asked to go home for the week. Chrysa and Ren would come to feed the Pokémon, but otherwise the lab would be completely closed for an entire week while Professor Cerise and his family enjoyed bonding time together in the sun. 'I can already hear the waves crashing against the beach...' she thought.